Northwest Passage: Helicopter Flight above Sam Ford Fjord

One of the great experiences on our Expedition through the Northwest Passage this summer was taking helicopter flights over regions that we sailed through. Our first flight was after our brief stop at Clyde River in southern Baffin Island in the territory of Nunavut, Canada, in the eastern region of the Canadian Arctic, where the helicopter joined our Ship on deck 7’s forward helicopter pad.

Shown below are some photos of Sam Ford Fjord (Kangiqtualuk Uqquqti) taken from the Ship before our helicopter ride, during the helicopter ride, from a Zodiac cruise, and a photo from our apartment’s deck as we sailed out of the fjord. The fjord is highly regarded for the harsh beauty of its landscapes with rocky cliffs rising steeply from the shore. Above the cliffs are numerous glaciers which we flew over (and photographed). The cliffs rise steeply (some go straight up) from the fjord’s shores to heights up to 1,500 meters (4,900 feet) above sea level.